LSx IROC: Project Thread

[sman]

Thats alright. I am putting a 2000 5.3L Chevy truck motor in the car. Its going to be mostly stock this year and then I'm going to do a cam and head work in the winter.


Thanks for all the comments!!!! I really apprieciate it!

Running the same setup as me. Using the truck intake or going ls1/6?

[mcg355]

Running the same setup as me. Using the truck intake or going ls1/6?

Im running the truck intake bc it out flows the stock ls1 intake. I have a 4" cowl hood on the car so fitting under my hood is no problem.

[trapin]

Dan this is a great thread. I've always loved the 3rd gen cars, their road manners always reminded me of a true race car feel. You're going to love that 5.3 in there. I have one in my 2002 Silverado Extended Cab and I think for what it is (and for what it's in) it has great power. It should fly in that 3rd gen. I thought I read somewhere awhile back that the driveshaft is actually reusable (meaning you don't have to cut it or lengthen it). Go to www.speartech.com I think it was there that I saw it. They did an LS1 swap into a third gen with amazing results. Also...Car Craft did a 5.3 liter and got a ton of power out of it for not alot of money. I will try to find a link to it online for ya.

[mcg355]

Dan this is a great thread. I've always loved the 3rd gen cars, their road manners always reminded me of a true race car feel. You're going to love that 5.3 in there. I have one in my 2002 Silverado Extended Cab and I think for what it is (and for what it's in) it has great power. It should fly in that 3rd gen. I thought I read somewhere awhile back that the driveshaft is actually reusable (meaning you don't have to cut it or lengthen it). Go to www.speartech.com I think it was there that I saw it. They did an LS1 swap into a third gen with amazing results. Also...Car Craft did a 5.3 liter and got a ton of power out of it for not alot of money. I will try to find a link to it online for ya.

Thanks! Yea you can reuse the original driveshaft from the 3rd gen. I have seen some results of the 5.3 swap into 3rd gens and they are awesome. The 5.3 is actually a better motor than the Camaro/Firebird LS1 in terms that it puts out more torque than the ls1 does and its a whole lot cheaper too. I have a guy I work with that has some performance parts for the motor and I am picking those up from him today. When Im all said and done I want to get about 400 rwhp out of this 5.3 and I know its easily possible and still get really good fuel economy for being a V8.


A little update for you guys. I got the motor mount in the car on Friday and it fits like a dream! Ill post up so good pics of the motor and the mounts and how well it fits into the car but for know I just have some crapy cell phone pics.

Thanks!!

[trapin]

Dan...do they sell adapter plates for the motor mounts or are they a whole new aftermarket mount specifically for this application? My LS1 in my '68 required adapter plates to reposition the original mounts on the block.

I hear you on the 5.3. If I had to do it again I would have foregone the LS1 and looked for a 6.0 motor instead, like an LQ4 or LQ9. A buddy of mine picked up a used L92 for $2800. All he did was swap out the cam for an LS7 cam, some headers, and the L76 intake kit. It dyno's at 515 horsepower. He put the mill in his '70 GTO. That car FLYS now. And he says he's averaging around 22mpg on the highway. These Gen III mills are just amazing. I will never mess with a small block Chevy again.

Let me know on those mounts. I am going to point this thread out to my friend Ken (myroc) on this site. I'm trying to talk him into doing something like this for his 3rd gen.

[meissen]

A buddy of mine picked up a used L92 for $2800. All he did was swap out the cam for an LS7 cam, some headers, and the L76 intake kit. It dyno's at 515 horsepower.

WOW! That's incredible!

[mcg355]

Yea these motors are amazing! I love that you can put a lot of performance mods into the motor and it still doesnt effect fuel economy as much as an older small block chevy. My last motor was a 383 with 500hp and I was lucky to get 8 mpg and now with this motor I should be around 400 hp and bringing in around 25 or so on the highway. These motors are truely a totally different animal and I am learning so much about them from this build.

As for the motor mounts I bought mine from Spohn and they are specifically designed to work in the 3rd gen Camaro/Firebirds. They are a little pricey but they are worth every penny! I would not go any other route for the motor mounts. Here is a link to Spohn who makes them: http://www.spohn.net/shop/1982-1992-...ng-Stands.html Spohn and Hawks Third Gen have been the 2 companies leading the way with parts for the LSx swap into 3rd gens. The only thing I wish was a new company to come out and make the 3rd gen LS1 long tube headers. As of right now only one company makes them and they was almost a grand just for the headers. And thats why I am running the stock LS1 manifolds for now until I build my own long tubes.

[Gottork]

WOW Dan you have come along way since I met you and saw your car.Congratz on all your progress. MIne is coming along but ALOT slower than yours....

Did you get rid of your thirdgen dash pad? if not is it in good shape?

Man this thing looks awesome dude..
I will be following along with your progress..

[mcg355]

Thanks Jess! Yea it's come a long way from then. I have a lot of time put into it and I still have to put a lot more. Im really looking forward to getting this thing on the road again. I do not have the dash pad anymore but I do have the rest of the dash. But the dash is out of a camaro and not a firebird.


What all is left to be done on yours?

[Gottork]

finish painting the engine bay and underside of the car, then throw it together.. I am very undecided if I wanna attempt the TA GFX yet or wait till its ready for paint and just get it on its feet and driveable for the west side M&G..

But I have almost everything to get her running and drive able, just getting motivated is the hardest part, but all these builds are helping..

It will be just a driver for now, then we shall see what the economy and gas prices lead me to do with the drive train, lol

[WMCCjames]

Good jod....keep it up! Keep your eyes open for a set of used long tube conversion headers...I actually scored a set off TGO for a smoking hot deal because the guy wanted to go with a turbo setup on his LS1.

Was able to pull down 31mpg to/from the M&G last weekend...gotta love the LS motors

[JoeliusZ28]

You're going to love that 5.3 in there. I have one in my 2002 Silverado Extended Cab and I think for what it is (and for what it's in) it has great power. It should fly in that 3rd gen.

Agreed. my dad has an '02 Z71 too and you arent kidding they are strong runners. that was the last year they ran freely with only minor torque management. My dads truck has caught me off guard on a downshift before... 20 mph roll the tail end was kicked out, both tires screaming. I actually thought i was driving a muscle for that second or two. I didnt even have it full throttle or intend to do it.

A buddy of mine picked up a used L92 for $2800. All he did was swap out the cam for an LS7 cam, some headers, and the L76 intake kit. It dyno's at 515 horsepower. He put the mill in his '70 GTO. That car FLYS now. And he says he's averaging around 22mpg on the highway. These Gen III mills are just amazing. I will never mess with a small block Chevy again.

thats just incredible...

[collier341]

Awsome job so far man! got a buddy who's doin' a similar build (Lt1 into 83' t/a)... i like that dash conversion you did.. care to snap a few more shots of it??

[mcg355]

Good jod....keep it up! Keep your eyes open for a set of used long tube conversion headers...I actually scored a set off TGO for a smoking hot deal because the guy wanted to go with a turbo setup on his LS1.

Was able to pull down 31mpg to/from the M&G last weekend...gotta love the LS motors

Thanks! I would love to have a set of the Hawks long tubes but man they are so expensive. Im thinking of building my own long tubes this winter when I put my goodies into the motor . Ill have to keep my eyes open to whats on TGO tho. Thanks for the heads up! I am really looking forward to the decent gas milage compaired to my last motor I had in the car.

Awsome job so far man! got a buddy who's doin' a similar build (Lt1 into 83' t/a)... i like that dash conversion you did.. care to snap a few more shots of it??

Thanks! That LT1 should move pretty good. They are a little easier to work with than the LS motors just in they are more compatable with the older style Chevy motors than these. Ive got some more pics on my computer at home. Ill have to try and dig them out but if I cant find them Ill snap some new ones. I need to add a few more pics of the progress anyways.


A little update today. I am getting my PCM back from Bryan Herter tmrw and then I should be able to start the car up this weekend. I got nearly all the wiring completed and I just need to reroute it in the Camaro now. I also got the gas tank wired and mounted into the car and man does it fit good! I actually thin it fits better than the stock metal tank. Other than that I got the rearend all ready to go and got the fluid changed out and while I was doing that I noticed that the gear ratio wasnt what I was told by the previous owner. He told me that he put 3.73s in the car but when I pulled the cover I saw 3.27 stamped into the gears. O well that just means a little better gas milage but once I get my 4th gen rear end Im going to swap some 3.73s into it to get some better power off the line. Thats pretty much it for now and I'll throw some pics up later tonight.

[mcg355]

Well, it has been a really long time since I last updated everyone on the car. I am about 2 weeks away from driving the car and it should be started this weekend. I have had some issues with getting parts but it is now all set and the motor and trans are in the car. The wiring is about 80% complete, I just need to finish up a few loose ends and clean the harness up a bit. As of right now I am currently modifying the Heddman Headers I bought to make them fit on the 5.3. I will post a lot of pics of the process as I go through it. And I am currently modifying my tranny crossmember to fit the 4L60E and make it so the torque arm is mounted on the crossmember as well. I have a few pics I'll post up here but I am yet to get some good ones of all the progress. I will keep updating you guys as I go along in the next few weels!

Thanks,
Dan